art of the XVI century English art of the XVI century

Trends in English art

Surrounded by the sea, by hard work and bloody struggle, England reached the world position to which she owes her extraordinary strength of will, productivity and position among the world's oceans. Stubborn and far-sighted sovereigns, like Henry VIII in the first half of the century, and Elizabeth in the second, contributed to the rise of the island state in all types of trade and exchange. It is known that the English poetry of the Elizabethan century, which saw the emergence of Shakespeare's dramas, had a powerful influence on the whole world. All the more surprising is the fact that England, which in the Middle Ages had one of the leading roles in the field of visual arts, now despite all the artistic enterprises of Henry VIII, during this whole period cannot boast of almost any independent works of creativity and in essence was granted works brought from overseas by Italian, German and Dutch artists. The history of the 16th century English art exists only as long as the “perpendicular style” with its flat “Tudor arches” continues to live in the field of architecture, and while the English rural castles continue to evolve according to the needs of their inhabitants.